Guru Somasundaram
Guru Somasundaram is an Indian actor who works in the Tamil and Malayalam film industries. He made his debut in Aaranya Kaandam (2011) winning critical acclaim for his role, before also appearing in the Tamil action film Pandiya Naadu (2013), Jigarthanda (2014) and Joker (2016). He rose to fame for playing the role of Shibu, a super villain in the 2021 Netflix Malayalam film, Minnal Murali.
Guru Somasundaram | |
---|---|
Born | Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India | September 3, 1975
Alma mater | Government Polytechnic College, Tamil Nadu |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2011–present |
Early life
Guru Somasundaram was born on 3rd September 1975. He joined the prominent Tamil theatre group in Koothu-P-Pattarai, where he acted in plays from 2002 till 2011. In 2003, director Thiagarajan Kumararaja saw him, while he was playing the role of Chandrahari in Koothupattarai's pla. Thiagarajan offered him an opportunity to feature in his future film.
Career
In 2008, Thiagrajan offered Somasundram a role in his neo-noir film Aaranya Kaandam, as the drunkard Kaalaiyan. Somasundaram lost seven kilograms and underwent training for the movie. Upon release in 2011, the film went on to win two National Film Awards, while Somasundaram's performance was well received by critics.[1] Rediff.com's critic praised the ensemble cast but added "the honours undoubtedly go to Guru Somasundaram. His gleeful cackles at the rooster fight, pathetic rumblings to his son and wide-eyed act in the Lodge are wonderful to behold."[2] Similarly Behindwoods.com noted that the actor had delivered a "superior" performance.[3] After seeing his performance, director Mani Ratnam signed him on to play a small role in Kadal (2013).
After leaving Koothu-P-Pattarai, he toured as a freelance theatre actor, before venturing into Malayalam cinema by portraying a photographer in 5 Sundarikal (2013), after being impressed by Shyju Khaled's narration.[4] Later that year, he was seen in a character role in Suseenthiran's critically acclaimed Pandiya Naadu, portraying the slain brother of Vishal's character. In between feature films, he appeared in the short silent film The Lost Paradise, portraying a prisoner heading home after fifteen years. He also won acclaim for his performance as an acting coach in Karthik Subbaraj's gangster film Jigarthanda (2014), where he was seen giving acting training to the character portrayed by Bobby Simha. Somasundaram had previously trained Simha as an actor in real life during the pair's theatre performances.[5] He is also known for his role as a district collector in the 2019 Tamil film Petta which starred Rajinikanth in the lead role.[6]
Filmography
Films
Year | Film | Role | Language | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
2011 | Aaranya Kaandam | Kaalaiyan | Tamil | |
2013 | Kadal | Kovil Kutty | Tamil | |
5 Sundarikal | Photographer | Malayalam | ||
Pandiya Naadu | Nagaraj | Tamil | ||
2014 | Jigarthanda | Muthu | Tamil | |
2015 | 49-O | Aarumugam | Tamil | |
Bench Talkies - The First Bench | David | Tamil | ||
Thoongaa Vanam | Duraipandiyan | Tamil | Bilingual movie | |
Cheekati Rajyam | Telugu | |||
Kohinoor | Naayakkar | Malayalam | ||
2016 | Joker | Mannar Mannan | Tamil | |
Kuttrame Thandanai | Balan | Tamil | ||
2017 | Yaakkai | Sriram | Tamil | |
Paambhu Sattai | Rajendran | Tamil | ||
2018 | Odu Raja Odu | Manohar | Tamil | |
Vanjagar Ulagam | Sampath | Tamil | ||
2019 | Petta | District collector | Tamil | |
2021 | Maara | Chokku | Tamil | |
Manja Satta Pacha Satta | Tamil | |||
Jai Bhim | Public Prosecutor (PP) Chellapandiyan | Tamil | ||
Ikk | Gnana Prakasam | Tamil | ||
Minnal Murali | Shibu | Malayalam | ||
2022 | Maamanithan | Vappa Bhai | Tamil | |
Agent Kannayiram | Kannayiram's father | Tamil | ||
Naalam Mura | Jayesh | Malayalam | ||
2023 | Pakalum Paathiravum | Janakiraman | Malayalam | [7] |
Yaathisai | Poosari | Tamil | [8] | |
Charles Enterprises | Gomathi's husband | Malayalam | [9] | |
Neeraja | Psychologist | Malayalam | [10] | |
Chera | Malayalam | |||
Bell | Brahma | Tamil | ||
Rani: The Real Story | Dharmajan | Malayalam | ||
Spark † | TBA | Telugu | Filming | |
2024 | ' † | TBA | Malayalam | Filming[11] |
Her † | TBA | Malayalam | [12] | |
Awards and nominations
Year | Award | Category | Film | Language | Result | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2017 | Behindwoods Gold Medal | Best Actor Male | Joker | Tamil | Won | [16] |
2022 | 10th South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Actor in a Negative Role | Minnal Murali | Malayalam | Won | |
Mazhavil Entertainment Awards | Best Actor in a Villain Role | Malayalam | Won | |||
OTT Play Awards | Breakthrough Performance of the Year | Minnal Murali | Malayalam | Won |
References
- Bhavanishankar, Jyothsna. "GURU SOMASUNDARAM INTERVIEW". Behindwoods.com. Archived from the original on 26 November 2012. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
- Srinivasan, Pavithra (10 June 2011). "Review: Aaranya Kaandam bypasses gangster cliches". Rediff. Archived from the original on 12 June 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
- "AARANYA KAANDAM MOVIE REVIEW". Behindwoods. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
- Krishna, Gayathri (10 June 2013). "In pursuit of recognition". archives.deccanchronicle.com. Archived from the original on 15 October 2014. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
- Srinivasan, Sudhir (21 September 2014). "Training Day". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 5 July 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
- "'Rajinikanth's enthusiasm and dedication are beyond his age'". 23 January 2019. Archived from the original on 19 June 2022. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
- "Kunchako Boban, Rajisha Vijayan's Pakalum Paathiravum to hit screens on this date". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 26 February 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- "Guru Somasundaram plays priest in period film". The Times of India. 1 April 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- "Charles Enterprises gets a release date". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 16 April 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
- "New song from Shruti Ramachandran's Neeraja out". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 11 May 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- "Mohanlal's 'Barroz' planning to release on THIS date! Read more". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
- "Her first-look poster out: Parvathy, Aishwarya Rajesh, Oorvasi, Remya Nambessan headline Lijin Jose's film". The Indian Express. 26 November 2022. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
- M, Ramakrishnan (19 April 2017). "'Joker deserved the National Award'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 20 March 2020. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
- Krishnakumar, Ranjani (20 February 2020). "Tamil web series Topless takes a story about women, honour and makes it about the absurdities of men". Firstpost. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- கார்த்தி (25 July 2022). "MEME BOYS விமர்சனம்: ஒரு மீமுக்கு அக்கப்போரா - எப்படியிருக்கிறது காலேஜ் கலாட்டா நிறைந்த வெப்சீரிஸ்?". Vikatan (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
- "BEHINDWOODS GOLD MEDALS 2017: FULL WINNERS LIST". Behindwoods. 13 June 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2017.
Basil Joseph - Guru Somasundaram to star in Namitha Pramod's upcoming film ‘KAPP’ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/basil-joseph-guru-somasundaram-to-star-in-namitha-pramods-upcoming-film-kapp/articleshow/89296131.cms
External links
- Guru Somasundaram at IMDb
- Guru Somasundaram on Facebook
- Guru Somasundaram on Moviebuff